Debra Brehmer

We Are Doing It All Wrong, Edward A. Dixon Gallery, Dayton, OH, Juror/Curator: Ed Dixon: “The exhibition is a challenge to artists and viewers to recognize, react and learn about the many ways humanity continually fails itself. These issues are not always mainstream and sometimes are hidden.” Jurors: Ed Dixon/Stacy Kranitz/Judith L. Huacuja
See the SHOW!
See the VIDEO!

It is not only a joy to “show around” in group exhibitions at various venues around the country, it is a gratifying, enriching experience, and a heartwarming one at that, to discover, interact with and support so many inspiring and dedicated individuals, organizations, endeavors, missions and visions. I meet new folks, but also “run into” friends and colleagues that “show up” in some of the same places: showing at some of the the same shows, sharing in some of the same artist talks and panels, featured in some of the same catalogues and publications. It is exciting to connect, and see both not only an overlap of interests materially and thematically, but also how we all approach things differently, and can learn from one another.

For example, I am currently showing at:
Word and Weft: Visualizing the Word, Webster Arts, Webster Groves, MO, Juror: Noriko Yuasa
Women. Defining Our Representation, Black House Artist, Juror/Curator: Ellen Mattesi (online)
We Are Doing It All Wrong, Edward A. Dixon Gallery, Dayton, OH, Jurors: Ed Dixon/Stacy Kranitz/Judith L. Huacuja
Evidence of Joy, Intersect Arts Center, Saint Louis, MO, Curator: April Parvitz
Soliloquy, presented by The Bridge Arts Foundation at The Scholarts Selection, San Gabriel, CA
Jurors: Charles Christopher Hill, Xin Song, Curator: Tia Xu
Whisper, Verum Ultimum Gallery, Portland, OR, Curator: Jennifer Gullia Cutshall (catalogue)
Interplay, presented by the Surface Design Association at The Dairy Barn Arts Center O’Bleness Gallery, Athens, OH,  Juror: Annet Couwenberg
Northern National Art Competition, Nicolet College Art Gallery, Rhinelander, WI, Juror: Debra Brehmer
The Circular Ritual of Spring, BG Gallery, Santa Monica, CA, Curator: Susan Lizotte (online)

And earlier this year:
Midway Marvels,ArtBarLA, Los Angeles, CA, Curator: Randi Matushevitz
Materiality Matters, Umpqua Valley Arts, Roseville, OR, Juror Panel: UVA Staff and Pacific NW professionals
Pulp: Book and Paper Arts, Sebastopol Center for the Arts, Sebastopol, CA, Juror: Donna Seager
Fantastic Fibers 2024, Yeiser Art Center, Paducah, KY, Juror: Sandro Tiberi, (catalogue)
String Theory, The Cultural Center of Cape Cod, South Yarmouth, MA, Curator: Molly Demeulenaere
Art of the Word, Sasse Museum of Art, Pomona, CA, Jurors: Fatemeh Burnes, Maurice Quillinan, Niamh Cunningham (catalogue)
By the Book, Artopia Gallery, Arcadia, CA, Curator: Rosie Getz

Through this experience I am able to be exposed to and interact with :
Individuals: artists, curators, critics, collectors, gallery, museum, art center, library and academic/university directors/staff (on all different levels of responsibility and experience and in varying roles, offices and positions)
Organizations: galleries, museums, art centers, universities/academic institutions, artist studios and alternative spaces (of different sizes, renown, reputation, influence and “status” in the “art world” and world at-large)

I plan to highlight and share about various of these individuals and entities over the next several posts. I will share particularly about Art Centers, which are an enormous source of vitality, creation, care and joy throughout the country and beyond. xxxooo

I begin with Gallerist Ed Dixon, in whose show We Are Doing It All Wrong I am honored to be in. Presented at the Edward A. Dixon Galleryin Dayton, OH. Of the show says Owner/Curator: Ed Dixon: “The exhibition is a challenge to artists and viewers to recognize, react and learn about the many ways humanity continually fails itself. These issues are not always mainstream and sometimes are hidden.” The illustrious jurors Ed Dixon/Stacy Kranitz/Judith L. Huacuja hold a wealth of knowledge, expertise, care and passion among them in addition to many accomplishments.

In a time of such fraught difference, fear, and loathing, it is heartening and illuminating to see and be a part of all of these individuals and entities, making a difference. I have to feel that that all of our work, no matter what the outcome, does make a difference.

Thank you to You all.

I am thrilled to show, “Hopes and Fears and…” in this exhibition at the Nicolet College Art Gallery !

24.5 x 16.25″, textile samples, linen thread

The 37th Northern National Art Competition will be held in Rhinelander, Wisconsin, from June 13 – July 27, 2024, at the Nicolet College Art Gallery. Began in 1987, this show is a cooperative venture between Nicolet College Arts & Enrichment and the Northern Arts Council (NAC). The Northern National Art Competition strives to showcase a cross section of contemporary art in a variety of two-dimensional mediums. Each year, hundreds of artists nationwide submit work to be considered for inclusion in this exhibition, and the art is always both visually exciting and intellectually stimulating.

View the show!

CURATORIAL STATEMENT

Many people wonder what goes on in the selection process of a juror for an art competition. I suspect that most of the work to which a juror responds resonates with that person for a variety of reasons, and yet we are all programmed with certain pre-dispositions.

The numerous entries for the Northern National competition represented a huge range of work with about two-thirds being representational. My eye moved toward work in diverse media, work that had texture, and anything that found a way to address current environmental or global concerns with a certain indirectness.

I like to get a sense of both the pleasure and struggle in an art-making process. When an artist seems to reach, experiment, and allow their work to be less buttoned-up or seamlessly complete, it becomes infused with energy. Drawing, painting, and photography have dominated our realm for a long time. There is still much to be explored in these areas. But in the past decade or less, textiles and fiber art have fully entered into the contemporary art world, bringing a freshness of exploration and a reevaluation of histories. We can now look to craft traditions around the world and contemplate how they inspired later art movements, or how the domestic work and pastimes of women actually parallel the fine arts world more closely than we had previously allowed. We are in a time of diversification in the art world, where artists of color, women, and LBGTQ artists are addressing important issues of identity, cultural oppression, and the occlusions of history. And while this is going in, it is prying open ways of seeing the world and providing access to more means of expression to discuss pertinent issues.

The art world has never been better or more confused than it is now. We are called upon to think more broadly. If you are a landscape artist making beautiful watercolor paintings of rivers and fields, can you push your thinking? Can you ask yourself hard questions? Why am I making this? What does it mean? More importantly, what does it mean now, in the context of this era?

If you are a photographer seeking beauty in the sky or national parks, is there a way to address both the beauty and the dire needs of land conservancy and resource protection? Not all art needs to be political. But it should have a tug. It should nudge the viewer toward curiosity and wonder.”
Debra Brehmer